1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to pervasive computing and, more particularly, to reserving and/or assigning kiosks for use by customers of an organization.
2. Description of the Related Art
Communication technology is advancing at a rapid pace. One notable advance has been the convergence of voice and data communications. To some degree, both voice and data now can be carried over a single network. Convergence has lead to the development of unified systems which are capable of sending and receiving messages over a variety of different communication channels, referring to different forms of communication such as electronic mail, paging, facsimile, instant messaging, telephony, and the like. For example, when a sending user attempts to contact a target individual, a message from the sender can be transmitted over one or more of these communication channels.
Within such messaging systems, a communication channel often is selected according to a profile associated with the target user. For example, a profile can specify that messages sent through the messaging system to the target user should be forwarded as electronic mails on Mondays or as facsimiles on Tuesdays. One can see that the flexibility afforded by such messaging systems can significantly increase the effectiveness of communications within an organization.
To date, however, these capabilities have not been successfully integrated into the routine business processes performed within an organization. Conventional messaging systems have not been used within organizations in a proactive manner which complements or supports customer service. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to provide a system which actively supports and fosters customer service activities within a business and/or organization.